Daynote - Mon 29 Jun

A new week! And the heat has broken in Scotland (not that it ever got as hot as the poor devils down south) with temperatures in the mid-teens and a very refreshing breeze. Extremely welcome. My natural operating temperature, when I'm at my happiest, is a clear sunny day in early summer between 16°C and 20°C with a nice breeze. That's when I feel at my happiest, because I can think, I can walk as far as I like without getting too sweaty and I can be outside a bunch.

I also had a very relaxed weekend, visiting friends, having lunch with family and finally tidying my office and cleaning the house after a few weeks of complete chaos. It's not the full gut-and-reorganise that I still really need to do to my office long-term, but it doesn't look like some kind of giant rat's nest anymore, which is a good start.

ON DECK: A solid 1,248 words in my newly clean and tidy office. Weird how it's easier to write when I'm not peering over stacks of books and moving coffee mugs out of the way. I'm charging ahead with DRIFT while waiting for edits on VAULT, which could arrive at any moment. But if I can get another day or two of 1k+ word counts I might crack 50k on DRIFT, which is my general marker for 'real book that I will finish'.

LISTENING: Greatly enjoyed M.W. Craven's appearance on Quick Book Reviews this morning. Mike is always good value on a podcast. Also I make a brief appearance in the reviews section as the source of Phillipa's review of CJ Merritt's OCTAGON.

WATCHING: More WIDOW'S BAY last night. Brilliant stuff. Only three episodes left and I hear they are all absolute bangers.

READING: I started making headway last night on THE FIFTEENTH MAN by William Cook (Bookshop, Waterstones, Amazon) after William's editor Miranda Jewess gave me a very polite nudge in the ribs at Capital Crime. It is matching up to the expectations raised by the excellent first chapter. A real sense of verisimilitude in place and time, as well as cracking pacing. Not far in but I think I'm going to enjoy it greatly.

LINK: Loved this piece from The Honest Editor about the somewhat nebulous publishing term of having 'a vision' for a book. Us authors most often encounter this phrase in rejection emails when we're told that an editor doesn't have 'a vision' for the book, but it's a useful term for a whole bunch of things that need to line up right for someone to make an offer.

UP NEXT: I'll keep on going with DRIFT this week for as long as I'm able, then switch tracks to VAULT when the edits come in. In the meantime I'm also prepping for my event this Friday at Waterstones Kirkcaldy:

If you're thinking of coming along, please do get in touch with the store and book your FREE place, and I'll see you there.

Onward!